Cult Life

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! Jehovah’s Witnesses published an article titled “The Breakdown of Law and Order: What Does the Bible Say?” using the recent riots in France as proof that we’re living in the last days. But what did Macron actually say in his address to the nation, and what was left out? Take the free FREEDOM Te...

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! I sat down with Jachin, a former Jehovah's Witness elder who spent almost 50 years inside the organisation. We talk about his life inside, what it was like to serve as an elder, the doubts that led him out, what leaving cost him, and how he is rebuilding. FIND JACHIN YouTube: https://www.youtub...

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! “Woman, shut up!” Those were the words directed at a woman during a Threads discussion involving Jehovah’s Witnesses. But is this just one man's misogyny, or does it reflect a deeper problem within the Watch Tower organisation? Take the free FREEDOM Test: https://rjcfreedom-check-tool.lovable.a...

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! Should Jehovah’s Witnesses be encouraged to give up well-paying jobs, sell their homes, and sacrifice career opportunities to do more for the organisation? ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Take the free FREEDOM Test: https://rjcfreedom-check-tool.lovable...

What started as a channel about questioning, critical thinking, Jehovah’s Witnesses, cults, and high-control systems has grown into an amazing community of 5,000+ people. I’ll be sharing what’s coming next, where I want to take the channel, and some developments I’m incredibly excited about. And I want to celebrate it with you! Take the free FREEDOM Test: https://rjcfreedom-check-tool.lovable ......

The South African Department of Health has issued a remarkably blunt response to the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ new blood transfusion policy. -------------------------------------------------------- New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to support the work I do and see this channel grow, please consider supporting me on Patreon. It would be highly appr...

Apparently, according to a recent Governing Body talk, we shouldn't be asking too many difficult questions about these recent changes to the blood policy. Because, you see... they aren't responsible. Jehovah did it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to support the wo...

Jehovah's Witnesses just updated their blood policy again. Their reasoning is shocking. New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to support the work I do and see this channel grow, please consider supporting me on Patreon. It would be highly appreciated. / robinjackson Buy my book Losing The Faith: Lulu http://tinyurl.com/wp5hk2tb Buy my book Cults:...

I was a Jehovah's Witness watching the Twin Towers fall — and part of my brain was already filing it away as prophecy. New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to support the work I do and see this channel grow, please consider supporting me on Patreon. It would be highly appreciated. https://patreon.com/robinjackson Buy my book Losing The Faith: Lu...

In this powerful and deeply personal conversation, Adam Stillman shares his journey through the World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG). He opens up about what first attracted him to the church, his experiences within the movement, the beliefs and teachings that shaped his worldview, and the questions that eventually led him to reconsider what he had been taught. Adam’s story offers a rare gl...

Victoria's Parliament just released a two-volume report — 98 findings, 39 recommendations — examining coercive control inside cults and high-control groups, built on 291 submissions and 317 survey responses. Forty-eight of those submissions named one organisation more than any other: Jehovah's Witnesses. Link to the report: https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/cofg -----------------------------------...

The Watchtower recently published an article on JW.org about consoling adult survivors of childhood trauma, but never mentions how Jehovah’s Witnesses' teachings and policies create that trauma in the first place. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to sup...

In December 1992, a body of elders in Florida wrote to Watchtower headquarters with an urgent problem. The Watchtower's written, signed, official response is shocking. New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to support the work I do and see this channel grow, please consider supporting me on Patreon. It would be highly appreciated. https://patreon....

In this conversation, Darls unpacks how spiritual abuse and religious harm often hide beneath the surface of everyday struggles. We talk about the parallels between religious high-control groups and authoritarian family systems, why most therapists aren't trained to recognise religious trauma even when they're otherwise qualified, and what an "adverse religious experience" actually looks like. You...

In this clip from our full interview, Darls Centola — author of Finding Truth with Michael: A Memoir of Friendship, Faith, and First Love — tells the story of how she got disfellowshipped from Jehovah's Witnesses And then there was 1975. The year the Watchtower's own literature had pointed to as the date of Armageddon. The year that came and went. The year that caused a mass exodus of members who...

Michael Jackson was one of the most famous teenagers on the planet. He had already performed on the Ed Sullivan Show. He had toured the world. His face was on magazine covers globally. And a group of Jehovah's Witness elders thought his hair was a problem. In this excerpt from our full 45-minute interview, Darls Centola, author of Finding Truth with Michael: A Memoir of Friendship, Faith, and Firs...

In this conversation, Darls Centola and Robin Jackson explore one of the most powerful psychological techniques used by high-control religious groups: love bombing. What begins as extraordinary kindness, acceptance, and friendship can become a powerful tool for attracting new members. Whether you're researching Jehovah's Witnesses, recovering from religious trauma, or simply interested in the psyc...

Jehovah’s Witnesses love to present themselves as the one true organization, but their own history tells a very different story. From the Bible Student movement to the Rutherford takeover and the endless wave of breakaways, splinter groups have always been part of the Watchtower story. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Book, Th...

What was Michael Jackson really like as a teenager? Darls Centola knows. Because she was there. In this powerful and deeply personal interview, I sit down with Darls Centola, a licensed clinical social worker, trauma therapist, and author of the memoir Finding Truth with Michael, to discuss one of the most remarkable untold stories about the Jackson family and the Jehovah's Witnesses. As a teenage...

Jehovah’s Witnesses are quick to criticize other religions, but when the same kind of scrutiny is directed at them, the response often turns defensive or personal. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you would like to support the work I do and see this channel grow, please consi...

A Jehovah’s Witness woman in Japan sued a hospital after being refused cataract surgery because she would not agree to a blood transfusion in an emergency. But this case is about much more than one hospital decision. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you woul...

In this video, I break down Norway’s latest court verdict involving Jehovah’s Witnesses, the long legal history behind the case, and what the decision means for religious freedom, state funding, and the practice of shunning. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Book, The Cult of Ignorance, available here: https://a.co/d/gIetrpz If you wo...

In this video, we break down a major court ruling in Spain involving Jehovah’s Witnesses and why it matters so much for former members speaking out. A Madrid court upheld the right of ex-members to publicly describe the organization as a “destructive sect,” recognizing that their testimony and experiences deserve to be heard in the public debate. ---------------------------------------------------...

In December 2022, the Japanese government did something no government had done before. They sent guidelines to every local authority in the country telling child protection centres they had the power to remove children from homes where religious practices constituted abuse, even if those practices were sincerely held religious beliefs. The Watchtower's Japanese branch and approximately twenty beli...

The NBA is usually about money, fame, and championships — but for Darren Collison, Dave Meyers, and Danny Granger, faith played a much bigger role in their lives than basketball. This video explores how Jehovah’s Witness beliefs influenced these three NBA players in different eras, from Collison’s shocking retirement in 2019 to the quieter, lesser-known stories of Dave Meyers and Danny Granger. Ne...